Rating agency RAEX (Expert RA) has revised its outlook for Russian Trade Bank's credit rating to stable, which means the strong likelihood of the rating being affirmed at the current level over the medium term. The bank's rating was affirmed at В++ (satisfactory creditworthiness).
Previously the rating carried a positive outlook.
Factors producing a positive impact on the credit rating are a modest portion of loans referred to the 3rd and 4th quality categories in the credit portfolio and low NPLs under the portfolio of loans granted to businesses and individual entrepreneurs. The bank's rating is also backed by low currency risks accepted by the bank and a high proportion of the portfolio of securities that are on the Bank of Russia's Lombard List. The rating outlook was upgraded, to a large extent, due to a drop in the coverage of operating expenses by net interest income and net commission income.
The bank's rating is still under pressure from modest capital adequacy, low coverage of the credit portfolio and the bank's dependence on household funds as a source of funding, while its deposit policy is not quite conservative.
